Greystone Hotel, Fort Myers, Florida

Greystone Hotel

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This Hotel was built by developer Peter Tonnelier. He built three other hotels and several commercial buildings and Tonnelier Court ( aka Patio de Leon). The hotel is at the entrance of the court. The hotel was built 1916. It was built to replace the Hotel Michigan which was destroyed two years earlier in a fire.

When it opened, the Greystone’s upper floors were used as a hotel. First floor served a variety of uses including original location of a county bank

Punta Gorda City Hall

     The Punta Gorda City Hall is located at 326 West Marion Avenue.  It opened in 1927.   It was replacement for an older building.  The architect was J.A. Stamm.  The building had a brick facade.  The front featured fluted Corinthian Columns.  In the past, the back of the structure  has a 2 bay fire station.

Punta Gorda Bank, Punta Gorda, Florida

     The historical marker for the Punta Gorda Bank is located at the Tamiami Trail just north of West Marion  Avenue, Porta Gorda, Florida.

     In June 1894, the Punta Gorda Bank was a branch the State Bank Fort Meade.  In July, 1899, it was chartered by the state of Florida as a separate bank.  Its initial capital was $15,000.  The President of the Bank was Percy Wandsworth marrow.  He was a former resident of Montana who owned his fortune in gold mining.  The bank building was a one story building with brick facade.  Businesses near the bank included Earnest Dry Goods, Punta Gorda Trading Company,Wades Drug Store,and a community social hall McAdow Hall.

     By December 1912, bank’s assets totaled $147,200.  In April 1912, a competing bank Merchant Bank opened  in Punta Gorda.

     The Punta Gorda Bank had a troubled history.    In April 23 ,1917 the bank was reorganized as  State Bank of Punta Gorda.  The new bank assumed the assets and liabilities of the old Punta Gorda Bank.  The new bank moved to a new building.

Marker at the former site of the Hotel Punta Gorda

This marker is located in an empty lot at the corner of.W. Marion Street and Taylor Street in Punta Gorda, Florida.

The Hotel Punta Gorda opened in January, 1888. It was a three story building with 150 guest rooms. They all had views of Charlotte Harbor. The building style was Queen Anne. There was clapboard siding, multipaned windows, round conical roofed towers, and a hipped roof.

The hotel featured modern conveniences such as gas lighting, electric bells, steam heat and open fireplaces.

Roses was draped over the railings of the veranda. Grounds were landscaped with camphor trees and palms.

The hotel went into a period of decline and closed in 1914. The building was bougnt in 1924 by Barron Collier. He changed the name to the Hotel Charlotte Harbor. He did an extensive remodel. The exterior was stuccoed. A fourth floor ballroom was added. Arches.were added to the porch. He added tennis courts, swimming pool and a boat basin.

Collier died in 1939. His heirs sold the Hotel to G. Floyd Alford in 1944. He in turn let Martin Fleischman take over the mortgage in 1956. Fleischman renamed the building Charlotte Harbor Spa. The Hotel was destroyed by a fire in August 1959

Newspaper Story about the Hotel Fire

Charlotte County Courthouse

Courthouse Information Sign

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     The Charlotte County Courthouse is located at 118 West Olympia Avenue Punta Gorda, Florida.

     Charlotte County was established in 1921 after local.citizenry pushed for 34 years to divide Desoto County.  Punta Gorda was to be the new county seat. The Board of county commissioners originally meet in rented quarters. In 1927, the board voted.to plan a new building.  They purchased 2 downtown lots for $25,000 from.George Brown.

     The new courthouse was of a neoclassical design with Greek and Roman influences. Large pediments and columns were located in the front of the building.  Architects were Leightner and Henson from Saint Petersburg, Florida.

     The original plans were modified to provide a second floor jail and living quarters for the jailer and his family. Total construction costs were $200,000.  Building was dedicated in March, 1928.  The building was expanded in the 1960’s and the 1980’s to accommodate the changing needs of the residents.

     The courthouse served.as the center of civic and community life for 71 years until the new justice center opened in 1999.

     Modern additions were removed and the buildings and the later the original courthouse building closed.

     The county board voted in 2005 to revitalize the building, restore the facade to its 1928 appearance and rehabilitate the interior preserving this building for public use.

Punta Gorda Women’s Club

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Punta Gorda Women’s Club

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The Punta Gorda Women’s Club formed in 1925. It was a consolidation of 3 separate women’s clubs–Ladies Fortnightly Club, Women’s Club Civic Association, and Married Ladies Club. The newly formed association built a Spanish Style Mission Building in 1926. It was built on land donated by Judge William Fenimore Cooper.

Through the years it featured stage productions, dances, meetings and dinners. For 30 years, it housed the the first area library. During World War 2, it was used by the USO.

The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.

     In 2000, the deed to the property was turned over to the Punta Gorda Historical Society.  The building is currently available for rental for events.

Old First National Bank, Porta Gorda, Florida

Old First National Bank Punta Gorda, Florida

Old First National Bank Punta Gorda, Florida

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The first bank at 133 West Marion Avenue was a state chartered institution in 1912. It was named Merchant’s Bank of Punta Gorda. It was located in a 2 story masonry neo classical commercial building. It was located across the street from the old Hotel Charlotte Harbor.

    In 1914, the bank switched to a federal charter and was renamed the First National Bank of Punta Gorda.

     By 1927, it was the most prosperous of the three Punta Gorda Banks.  The collapse of the Florida land boom deflated land values.  In 1929, all three banks in Punta Gorda collapsed.  The First National Bank never reopened.

    The bank building is the oldest existing one in Charlotte County.    Currently the building is occupied by Serendipity Salon and Spa.

     The bank building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Picture of the Old Bank

Alva Consolidated School     

    This  a historic school located in Alva, Florida at 21291 River Road.  The building style is Mission/Spanish Revival.  The Architect is W.L Reddit.

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Alva Consolidated School

Alva Consolidated School

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Alva Consolidated School

Alva Consolidated School

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Alva Consolidated School

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